Health Reporter
KCUR 89.3, NPR in Kansas City
Kansas City
,
MO
Application Deadline: Friday, Jul 29, 2022
Description
Missouri and Kansas are both at a critical juncture for health care and civil rights, with individuals, communities and policymakers involved in nationally significant issues including abortion, gender-affirming care, Medicaid and the worsening opioid crisis, and KCUR is looking for a full-time reporter to take on this important beat.
KCUR’s health reporter will pay particular attention to policy, health disparities, and equity, and will consider the social, environmental and economic factors that shape people’s lives in the Kansas City metropolitan area.
This reporter will brainstorm, research, write, report and produce spot news, digital stories and long-form audio features. They will also create social content to accompany their stories, participate in community engagement efforts, and appear on talk shows, podcasts and community panels, as needed.
We’re looking for someone who can work on different projects simultaneously while meeting deadlines in a fast-paced environment, who can take direction and work collaboratively, and who can produce to the highest journalistic standards. Our new reporter doesn’t need radio or health reporting experience – we have experts who are happy to teach those skills – but they must have strong reporting and writing talent and must share our commitment to serving all of our audiences, tracking the diversity of sources and contributing to our positive and welcoming work environment.
Characteristic duties
- Stays abreast of daily developments and builds a broad base of knowledge, sources, and expertise on health-related topics.
- Identifies,researches, pitches, writes, reports, edits and voices spots, two-ways, and feature stories for morning and afternoon news magazines, local talk shows, and national programs as appropriate, and writes accompanying digital stories.
- Anticipates and responds to breaking news.
- Tracks source demographics.
- Suggests story ideas and helps focus story angles for colleagues working on related subjects; collaborates with other KCUR reporters and talk show producers on projects.
- Contributes segment ideas and appears as a guest or host on KCUR’s local talk show, podcasts and community events, as needed.
- Collaborates with the KCUR’s partners, including the Kansas News Service, Harvest Public Media, the Midwest Newsroom and national entities to share content across multiple platforms.
- Handles newscasts and/or announcing, as needed.
- Participates in all assigned fund-raising and outreach activities, on air and off.
- Other duties as assigned.
Minimum qualifications
A Bachelor’s degree or an equivalent combination of education and experience and at least 3 years of experience from which comparable knowledge and skills can be acquired is necessary.
Preferred qualifications
- Five years of experience producing news content for digital and social platforms.
- Bachelor’s degree in journalism, communications or a related field
- Excellent verbal and written communication skills and good news judgment.
- A commitment to seeking out and including diverse voices and communities in reporting.
- One year of work experience in a radio, news, or public media organization.
- Demonstrated ability to cover breaking news as well as report through long-form, innovative storytelling.
- A demonstrated ability to humanize complex and nuanced policies, reports and scientific information.
- A demonstrated ability to take direction and work collaboratively.
- A demonstrated ability to meet deadlines.
- Enthusiasm for the role of public media in a changing journalism environment.
- Experience operating digital editing systems (e.g. Adobe Audition), field recording units, and other audio production equipment.
Salary range
$47,476 – $53,000, commensurate with experience, education, and internal equity.
How to Apply
KCUR 89.3 is the NPR affiliate in Kansas City and is an editorially independent community service of the University of Missouri – Kansas City. Please apply online at UMKC’s website: https://info.umkc.edu/hr/careers/ Select “Staff Position,” then “View Jobs,” then “View All Jobs.” This posting will remain open until filled; review of applications to begin June 13, 2022.